Esta TerBlanche (7 January 1973 – 19 July 2024) was a South African actress, best known for her roles on television

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

s in both South Africa and the United States.

Early life

TerBlanche was born in

Rustenburg Rustenburg (; , Afrikaans and Dutch language, Dutch: ''City of Rest'') is a town at the foot of the Magaliesberg mountain range. Rustenburg is the most populous city in North West (South African province), North West province, South Africa (549 ...

Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name ''Transvaal''. * South African Republic (1856–1902; ...

(now

North West Province North West ( ; ) is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Mahikeng. The province is located to the west of the major population centre and province of Gauteng and south of Botswana. History North West was incorporated after the end of ...

). She was of

Huguenot descent The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Besançon Hu ...

. She grew up on a

game farm A game farm is a place where game animals are raised to stock wildlife areas for hunting. The term also includes places where such animals are raised to be sold as food or for photography. Their existence has been exemplified within the South Afr ...

, replete with

monkeys Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes. Thus monkeys, in that sense, co ...

cows Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are called co ...

horses The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 milli ...

sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...

, warthogs, and elands.

Television

TerBlanche was crowned Miss Teen South Africa in 1991, and subsequently played Bienkie Naudé Hartman on the South African drama '' Egoli: Place of Gold'' from 1992 to 1995. In 1995, TerBlanche decided not to renew her contract with ''Egoli'' and, instead, opted to further her acting career in the U.S.Nancy M. Reichardt, "South African finds success in America," ''Austin American-Statesman,'' 16 January 2000, p. 37. Retrieved 14 October 2011 from ''Academic (Lexis-Nexis).'' Within three weeks of arriving in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, she found her first job, acting in a hair products commercial. In 1997, TerBlanche was cast in the role of

Gillian Andrassy Here is a list of characters who have appeared on the ABC Daytime and TOLN soap opera ''All My Children''. A Carter Anders *Jason Pendergraft (2013) Pine Valley Hospital doctor with an unknown past. Bill Anderson * James Pritchett (1989) ...

About the Actors: Esta TerBlanche
," ''Soap Central.'' Retrieved 23 October 2011. on the American daytime drama ''

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2 ...

''. Gillian, a troublemaking princess, was killed off in 2001 as TerBlanche asked to be written out of the show to move back to South Africa. TerBlanche made a guest appearance on ''Egoli: Place of Gold'' in 2004. She also made additional appearances on South African TV and in movies, but later returned to the United States. In 2010, she was interviewed by the American magazine ''

Soap Opera Digest ''Soap Opera Digest'' was a weekly magazine covering American daytime soap operas. It featured onscreen and offscreen news about the series, interviews with and articles about performers, storyline summaries and analysis, and related promotional ...

''. She reported then that she had divorced and taken a break from acting."Scene and Heard: Where Are They Now? Esta TerBlanche (Ex-Gillian, ''All My Children'', 1997-2001)," ''Soap Opera Digest'' (7 December 2010), p. 60. She stated that she had opened a spa, exploring her interest in the medical field and in healing. In the interview, TerBlanche also noted that she had begun acting again and had recently filmed a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

in South Africa. She expressed interest in returning to ''All My Children'' or acting in another soap, citing her time on ''All My Children'' as the best of her life. In 2011, she was briefly profiled in the ''People'' magazine tribute to ''All My Children.'' In August 2011, it was announced that TerBlanche would reprise the role of Gillian during the final weeks of ''All My Childrens broadcast on American network television. TerBlanche made a guest appearance on the show on 24 August 2011. Plays she appeared in include: ''

The Glass Menagerie ''The Glass Menagerie'' is a memory play by Tennessee Williams that premiered in 1944 and catapulted Williams from obscurity to fame. The play has strong autobiographical elements, featuring characters based on its author, his histrionic mo ...

'', '' Pygmalion'', ''Hear Ye'', and ''Ten Times Worse on Friday''. She also starred in the film, ''Three Thieves and a Wedding''. TerBlanche also worked as a TV presenter in South Africa for the environmental program ''50/50'' and the children's show, ''K-T.V.'' TerBlanche was well known in South Africa and appeared on the covers of many magazines.

Death

TerBlanche died in Los Angeles on 19 July 2024, at the age of 51. In January 2025, it was announced her cause of death was the result of an

intracranial hemorrhage Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) refers to any form of Hemorrhage, bleeding Internal bleeding, within the Human skull, skull. It can result from trauma, vascular abnormalities, hypertension, or other medical conditions. ICH is broadly categorized ...

stemming from blunt force trauma, with the belief being this was sustained from a "ground level fall".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:TerBlanche, Esta 1973 births 2024 deaths People from Rustenburg Afrikaner people South African soap opera actresses American soap opera actresses 20th-century South African actresses 21st-century South African actresses 21st-century American women Deaths from intracranial haemorrhage